The Coordinating Ministry for Food is set to launch the MBG National Command Center this month. Reportedly, the facility does not require a large budget–only an LED screen and a fast internet connection to support its operations. The stated goal is to streamline coordination between ministries, agencies, and all relevant stakeholders.

TNI Manunggal Membangun Desa (TMMD) is often celebrated for delivering what many government programs cannot: speed. In a matter of weeks, rural roads appear, houses are repaired and drainage systems installed. For villages long neglected by bureaucratic inertia, TMMD offers tangible change. But why is civilian development increasingly executed by the military—especially when the funding comes from tightening public budgets?

In the days surrounding May Day, the government floated a plan to push down ride-hailing commissions—reportedly to 8%—while bringing in a prominent labor figure, Jumhur Hidayat, into the policy orbit. The message was unmistakable: the state hears workers. The question is whether it is actually fixing their problem—or merely absorbing their demands.

President Prabowo Subianto, in his speech at the groundbreaking event for the downstreaming projects yesterday (29/04), reaffirmed his commitment to “continue MBG until completion.” The phrasing left one wondering. What does “completion” mean for a program that is supposed to run every school day? More importantly, what happens to MBG when Prabowo is no longer in office?